Has Spencerport experienced more traffic problems in recent years? Driving down Union Street (Rt. 259) at 5 p.m. one would certainly think so. Now, even the Village of Spencerport has its rush hours, when bumper-to-bumper traffic slows progress or halts it completely if the lift bridge over the Erie Canal is up.

Marvin Kleinberg, Senior Transportation Analyst of the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT), said that since Route 531 opened there has been a 13.5 percent increase in traffic per year between Route 531 and Route 31 on Union Street (Route 259). There has also been a four percent increase in traffic per year between Route 531 and Route 104.

"If traffic didn't increase (in those areas), we would be disappointed," he says. "We tried to divert traffic from Routes 31 and 104. That (the increased traffic on Route 259) is a (sign of) success. We had hoped for that kind of diversion. It was anticipated. It is good to see the numbers verify what we had hoped for."

However, for those who live in the Village of Spencerport, success might not be the word they would use. Traffic is heavier especially during the boating season when the bridge over the Erie Canal is up on a regular basis, and traffic piles up in long lines on both sides of the canal waiting for the process of raising the bridge, having the boat pass through and then lowering the bridge.

Investigator Paul Kaseman of the Ogden Police Department confirms the DOT studies saying, "There is absolutely more traffic. I don't know if you can attribute it all to Route 531. The increase in traffic is also related to the increase in population here in this area." He says that it is a real inconvenience for motorists when the bridge in Spencerport is up. In addition, Kaseman says, that other area bridges have been under construction this summer - the Trimmer Road Bridge, the Washington Street Bridge and for a short time the Gillett Road Bridge. Kaseman says that it is also a problem for emergency vehicles.

Kaseman feels that some of the Spencerport traffic is people commuting to Hilton. "I live in the Village of Hilton, so I take 259 home. I would not go on to Washington Street (if he were commuting on Route 531). Another source of the traffic Kaseman feels is people coming from the city on Route 531 and driving up to Ridge Road. Kaseman feels one solution for the combined problems of the extra traffic and the canal bridge being up often during boating months would be "to sit down with the New York State Thruway Authority (the agency which now operates the canal system) and find a schedule of times of the day for the bridge (to be raised or not raised)." He gives examples of times which would not be good for the bridge to be up, such as times when the school buses are on the road during the school year and during the rush hours in the morning and evening. For now it looks like drivers are just going to have to deal with the extra traffic and inconveniences of the bridge. Solutions don't seem readily available at this time.